Banks & lenders
Independent budget, schedule, and draw review so the loan funds work that is actually in place, plus construction management for your own branches.
- Budget and cost review
- Draw and pay application review
- Branch renovations
Construction management & owner's representation
Your project, built right. From blueprint to keys in hand.
Ascend Contracting Group manages construction and reduces risk for owners, developers and lenders. We bring the controls of a national construction management firm to commercial and residential projects $10 million and under, a market the largest firms rarely serve.
$10M & UnderProject focus
CM & Owner's RepConstruction management
One PointOf accountability
Texas · MichiganService area
Who we work for
Built for the people who fund and own the project.
Commercial & institutional owners
One accountable manager for healthcare, education, office, and retail projects, from budget through closeout, while you run your business.
- Construction management
- Owner's representation
- Occupied-space renovations
Developers & investors
Lender-ready budgets, competitive buyout, and schedule control that protect your pro forma and your return.
- Budgets you can take to a lender
- Value engineering
- Competitive buyout
The challenge we solve
The money is there. The planning usually isn't.
Most owners we meet can fund their project. What costs them is what happens when the work starts before the plan is finished: projects drag on, budgets creep, and change orders pile up.
- Projects that linger for months past the promised finish date
- Overcharges and change orders from scope that was never fully defined
- Bids that look low on paper and come in high at the end
- No clear view of where the money is going until it's already spent
The Ascend answer
Plan it right. Build it efficiently.
In today's economy, every dollar and every week counts. We do the planning up front: complete scopes, a realistic schedule, and competitively bid pricing, so the work moves without costly surprises.
We don't self-perform trade work, so our only interest is yours. You get one point of accountability from preconstruction through closeout, and open-book reporting on every dollar.
What we do
Construction management, estimating, and project delivery.
We structure each engagement around your project, from a single advisory role to full delivery management.
Core service
Construction Management
We plan, bid, award, and manage every trade on a cost-of-the-work basis, with open-book reporting so you see where every dollar goes.
- Procurement
- Trade management
- Change-order control
- Pay applications
Advisory
Owner's Representation
Already have a builder? We sit on your side of the table, reviewing scope, bids, schedules, and pay applications so the project stays on track and on budget.
- Bid review
- Schedule audits
- Draw review
- Lender reporting
Preconstruction
Estimating & Preconstruction
We provide budgets you can take to a lender, scope packages trades can price accurately, and value-engineering options before anything is bought.
- Conceptual budgets
- Trade scopes
- Value engineering
- Permit strategy
Turnkey
Project Delivery
We coordinate design, permitting, construction, and handover under one roof. You make the key decisions, and we handle the execution through closeout.
- Design coordination
- Inspections
- Punch list
- Closeout & warranties
Why owners choose Ascend
Big-firm controls, built for projects under $10 million.
The largest construction management firms seldom take on projects of this size, which leaves many owners without real oversight. Our process was developed working alongside and in partnership with top-five national CM firms, and we apply that same quality control and risk management to every project $10 million and under.
Awarded on complete scope
We never award on the lowest base bid. Every award goes to the lowest adjusted total with complete scope, documented in a bid tab and a written recommendation you sign.
Open-book cost control
We bill on a cost-of-the-work basis. You see the bids, the contracts, and the pay applications, with no hidden markup on trade work.
A documented, repeatable system
Every project runs on the same procurement and controls workflow: project brief, trade scopes, RFPs, bid tabulation, award recommendation, and weekly look-ahead.
Ready for your lender
Budgets, schedules, and draw packages are built to the standard lenders and institutional owners expect from day one.
The question isn't whether your project gets built. It's whether it gets built right. Our whole process exists to make sure the answer is yes.
Ascend Contracting Group
Results
Knowing how to build isn't the same as knowing how to deliver.
More contractors enter the market every year. A good builder or tradesman doesn't always know how to deliver a project to spec, work with the architect so the design matches what the owner needs, or carry a budget a lender can trust. That is the work we do.
$2.0MUnder the original budget
Case study · Healthcare
Same architect. Same project. $2 million under budget.
The project carried a $5.5 million budget while the owner's architect was serving as both architect and construction manager. Ascend stepped in as construction manager, and the owner kept the same architect.
We value-engineered the design, competitively bid every scope, and qualified each trade partner. The work was bought out at $3.5 million with subcontractors fully capable of delivering it.
Healthcare & education projectsWhat we protect owners from
Overspending
Change orders
Schedule delays
Disputes & litigation
Already have a budget or bids in hand? We'll review them and show you where the risk and the savings are.
Request a Budget ReviewHow it works
A proven process. No guesswork.
Five phases, the same on every project, so you always know where things stand and what comes next.
- 01
Consult & Scope
Goals, budget, timeline, and a clearly defined scope.
- 02
Preconstruction
Estimating, design coordination, permit strategy, and trade scopes.
- 03
Bid & Award
Competitive bids, leveled in a bid tab, with awards recommended in writing.
- 04
Build & Manage
Trade management, change-order control, and weekly look-aheads.
- 05
Closeout
Inspections, punch list, warranties, and a clean handover.
Phase 03 in practice
Lowest adjusted total, not lowest base bid.
The cheapest number on paper often leaves out scope that comes back later as change orders. We level every bid to the same complete scope before recommending an award.
| Bidder | Base bid | Scope gaps | Adjusted total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade A | $184,500 | +$31,200 | $215,700 |
| Trade BAward | $196,800 | +$4,100 | $200,900 |
| Trade C | $203,250 | $0 | $203,250 |
Illustrative example. Every award comes with a written Subcontractor Award Recommendation for owner signature.
Experience
Work for the owners who need it done right.
Commercial, institutional, and residential work across Texas and Michigan.
Commercial & institutional
Financial institution
$1.5M branch renovation
An occupied branch renovation managed as CM and owner's representative.
Residential
Houston
New construction
Sectors we serve
CommercialFinancial institutionsHealthcareEducationDevelopers & investors
Questions owners ask
Frequently asked questions
What does a construction manager do?
A construction manager plans the project, prepares the budget and schedule, bids every trade, recommends awards, and manages the work through closeout on the owner's behalf. Ascend does not self-perform trade work, so our only interest is getting the owner the right scope at the right price.
How is Ascend paid?
We work on a cost-of-the-work basis with a construction management fee agreed before work starts. You see the bids, the contracts and the pay applications.
What size projects do you take on?
Commercial, institutional and residential projects $10 million and under. That is a range the largest national construction management firms rarely serve.
Where do you work?
Houston and the rest of Texas, plus Michigan.
Can you review a budget or bids I already have?
Yes. We review budgets and bids against complete scope, flag gaps that tend to come back as change orders, and show where value engineering can bring the number down.
Do you work with banks and lenders?
Yes. We provide independent budget, schedule and draw review so loan funds go to work that is actually in place, and we manage construction for banks' own branch renovations.
Have the capital and the vision? Let us handle the rest.
Start a ProjectGet in touch
Let's talk about your build.
Share a few details and a member of our team will follow up to schedule a consultation.
Emailinfo@ascendcontractinggroupllc.com
Office7020 Cullen Blvd., Houston, TX 77021
Service areaTexas & Michigan
CredentialsLicensed & insured. Certificates available on request.